The invention relates to a method of electroforming finished parts utilizing a heat shrinkable mandrel.
Conventional approaches to the electroforming of parts are expensive and time consuming. One such method involves the use of mandrels which can be dissolved. An aluminum mandrel is used upon which a coating of metal is deposited. The mandrel is then placed in a sodium hydroxide bath to dissolve the mandrel. Another process utilizes a stainless steel mandrel which must be carefully machined with a taper so that it can be removed from the finished part. Stainless steel has the ability to accept a plated coating and can, with proper handling, be removed from the final electroplated parts.
The present invention avoids these difficulties with a simple, relatively low cost process, which leads itself to commercial usage.